Gallery Night - 8/15/2019

I finally made it to my very first Gallery Night in Providence and it didn't disappoint!

Gallery Night has been going strong for over two decades and it is FREE of charge.  A core group of dedicated volunteers manage all the details and each third Thursday of the month (from March through November), its all about the arts in Down City.

You can take one of the trolley tours or stroll around and explore a walking tour. You can also take the bus (with a Gallery Night button). New this year is an accessibility tour that is completely wheelchair accessible.  And, get this:  every gallery and museum in Providence is FREE.

My friend, Lisa, and I jumped on the first trolley tour of the night at 5:30 which offered a look at some of the historical perspectives in Providence. The guided tours include a very knowledgeable guide.  There were about 30 of us in a very comfortable trolley that picked us up at One Regency Plaza (you can park in the lot) and delivered us to Providence City Hall for a peek at work by artists, Carla Ricci and Roberta Kaufman.  Both artists received a special recognition by the city courtesy of Stephanie Fortunato of the Dept. of Arts, Culture, + Tourism on behalf of Mayor Jorge O. Elorza .

   
Next up, we popped into the Rhode Island State Archives for a look-see at their exhibit, Andiamo, celebrating the Italian heritage of our state, including nearby Federal Hill. There was also a copy of the Declaration of Independence - one of only 201 copies made at the time.

  
We popped into BankRI over in the Financial District to check out work done Kyle Balles. He created large and small scale assemblages made from a variety of found objects in Providence. That was a small space so I didn't get any photos but it did take these - it was a stunning night, weather-wise. I love that Superman building!
We ended our tour at RISD Art Museum for a gander at the stunning Gorham Silver exhibit that included a trophy made out of 70,000 melted dimes and a really big spoon.  Lisa's phone takes much better photos then mine does and she caught some exquisite images of several of the pieces.  The exhibit is there until December 1 and as is always the case, access to the museum is FREE on Sundays!
 
Such a great evening out for an explorer like me.  And, I can do it again for the next three months.  So can you.  I'll tell you this much, the more I delve into the arts and culture in this fine state, the more I fall for it.  So much to discover!

Save the date:  September 19 is the next one - hope to see you there!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Providence Art Club

Image
To kick off April (and my first post on Artclectic New England ), I decided to reach out to one of the oldest arts organizations in the Creative Capital. As the gallery manager told me, " The Providence Art Club was founded in February of 1880 to ‘promote art culture’ in the City of Providence and beyond. Founded by six women and ten men, we are the first organization of our kind to be jointly founded by men and women and to include women as full and equal members from the start. We also count the noted African American artist Edward Mitchell Bannister among our founders. The Club is home to three gallery spaces, two classrooms, a café, and fifteen individual private artists’ studios.” The Providence Art Club is still home to many artists in the state and host new exhibitions every three weeks (totally free and open to the public) and have various classes and workshops available for the accomplished artist and those just starting. I was able to speak to Michael Rose, the
Read more

The Providence Improv Guild

Image
For May, I thought it might be time to bring a little fun to this quarantine situation, so I reached out to the Providence Improv Guild. I first learned about PIG at my first Pecha Kucha event held in the PIG rehearsal space. The event was aptly titled “When Pigs Fly,” a saying that feels somewhat less comical now that the impossible seems to happen each day. But let’s take a break from the neverending sad type of craziness and learn about the happy type of craziness of the Providence Improv Guild. Back in 2012, a group of local improvisers looking to create a more cohesive community for other improv groups and improv enthusiasts around Providence started the Providence Improv Guild. The Guild is a school and performance space for improv and sketch theater and is currently located in the Southside Cultural Center at 393 Broad Street in Providence. They teach four levels of improv classes, do workshops for businesses, students, or any group that wants to build up their “so-called
Read more
Image
Podcasting is a great way to share information, whether it has a local or global perspective.   If you have just starting producing your show – or you are thinking about launching one – this is going to be a very helpful session for you! I have over two decades’ experience in the world of radio and producing other audio content.   A few months ago, I launched an audiozine called Artclectic New England. It spotlights arts, culture, and lifestyle in the region.    You can listen to it here:   https://soundcloud.com/artclectic-new-england This two class session will feature tips and tricks on how to rock your podcast because it is all about the planning, the execution, and the distribution so you can share it with the world.   Here are some of the things we will be talking about: interview prep, working with a co-host, creating an editorial calendar, creating a script – just to name a few. The cost is $30 for both classes – that’s it! And, I’ll even toss in some pastries to bo
Read more